Pain 'Petrol': Who is Feeling High Gasoline Prices the Most?
We take a look at the cost of gasoline for U.S. and global drivers
The impact of gasoline costs on drivers and consumers is dependent on several factors
We take a look at current regional gasoline prices and miles driven per licensed driver to calculate annual gasoline costs in different states and countries
Business with exposure to the states with the largest gasoline expense may show relative consumer demand weakness
Methodology
The Federal Highway Administration provides state-level datasets on miles driven per capita, population and licensed drivers. This data was used to calculate annual miles driven per licensed driver. Regular gasoline prices by state derived from AAA were then utilized to calculate estimated annual gasoline cost per driver by state.
Estimated country-level miles driven per capita and gasoline costs by country were calculated in a similar fashion. The U.S. per capita/per driver miles driven ratio was used across all countries.
All analysis assumes 25 miles per gallon (MPG) fuel efficiency
U.S. Gasoline Cost Pain
Wyoming, Mississippi, Indiana, New Mexico and Alabama spend the most annually on gasoline costs. Unsurprisingly, states with more rural areas have some of the highest miles driven per year.
Another way to consider the impact to the consumer and ultimately gasoline and oil demand is the marginal expense. In this instance, we consider the change in cost to consumers versus when gasoline was $3/gallon in their respective states.
On average, the annual gasoline cost for U.S. drivers has increased by $866 per year, or just under $20 per week versus $3/gallon.
Note that on hover we show the annual, monthly and weekly change in expense by state.
International Gasoline Cost Pain
Admittedly a number of assumptions were used for the international estimates. We adjusted and reconciled a per capita kilometers driven dataset with Federal Highway Administration data, grossed up per capita miles into per driver at the U.S. rate and converted into miles. Gasoline costs in $USD per gallon were utilized from globalpetrolprices.
Despite having some of the lowest gasoline prices in the world, U.S. drivers spend more to drive. Higher miles driven offsets lower gasoline prices.
Despite the Russia-Ukraine conflict being in or on Europe's doorstep, Americans likely feel pain at the pump moreso than their European counterparts.
